This Christmas (Clean)
by joannacamilley
Summary: It's Christmas 2013 and Caroline has planned a party to bring the whole gang together. After a few surprises, including a proposal, Stefan is happy to spend the night with the one he loves. Clean version. One shot.


**A/N: This is the second version of This Christmas that I have written. If you like smut, go read This Christmas (Mature). If you don't, keep reading :) Thanks to iwillforgetdamon for helping me write this. Merry Christmas everyone!**

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><p>To say Christmas was Caroline's favorite time of year would be an understatement. There wasn't much more Stefan could do than watch her buzz around the living room of the Boarding House like her feet were on fire. One second she was hanging garland off the staircase, the next she was placing candles on the tables, and a moment later she was filling the stockings that lined the fireplace. He caught her as she tried to slip past him to put another ornament on the tree. His hands wrapped around her waist as she started complaining and fidgeting.<p>

"Stefan! Let go! We don't have much time before everyone comes-"

"They'll be here in like 2 hours. Relax, Care, we have time," he chuckled, kissing the top of her head.

She huffed but didn't try to escape his embrace. "I just want it to be perfect, you know? This is Bonnie's first Christmas back, Damon and Elena finally worked out their thing, and my mom-" she stopped suddenly, her throat choking up.

Stefan's smile melted away. After her terminal diagnosis last Christmas, Liz Forbes was rarely seen without her daughter by her side. Once they learned that Mystic Falls was free game for vampires, Caroline immediately moved back in so she could be with her mother in her last months. Stefan never strayed too far from either woman, providing emotional support for both.

He vividly remembered one time when Caroline went out for a quick hunt, Liz had pulled him closer by his sleeve. Her voice was weak and her skin pale, but her eyes held his as she spoke the last words he would ever hear her say: "Please take care of my daughter."

"Always," was the word he managed to get out before Caroline returned with a fresh rabbit.

It wasn't long until the end, and it broke everything in Caroline. It took her a while to even be able to step outside her house, but Stefan stayed through it all. And though he wished it had been under different circumstances, he had been able to earn all of her trust again and more.

In the beginning, it was rough. Stefan wasn't sure if they were only together because she was emotionally compromised, but he accepted it nonetheless. Days turned into weeks, weeks into months, and slowly she began getting the extra bounce in her step that made her Caroline Forbes. She threw herself into school when fall semester rolled by, intent on getting a degree in party planning. To honor her studies, she decided that she would throw a huge Christmas party for the entire gang.

He was pulled out of his thoughts when she slipped out of his arms and quietly hung an ornament on the tree. Her posture was stiff and movements mechanical, telling him that she was still very much in her thoughts.

"Care," he said softly, rubbing a gentle hand down her back. "It's okay to miss her."

He could hear her sniffing the tears away but she wouldn't turn to face him. "I know."

"I think about her all the time too," he admitted. It made her turn her head slightly in his direction but not all the way. "I also think about how we got together. I mean, you were so angry at me for so long, and then suddenly there were more important things to think about." She dropped her head and her breathing became shallower as she cried. "I don't know if you thought I'd run away from it, but I had to stay not just for you, but for your mom. She was also my friend and it killed me that there was nothing we could do for her except be there."

Caroline leaned into his arms, her face pressed into his shoulder. "Does it ever get better?"

"You never stop missing them, but time dims the pain a bit," he said honestly. "I think about my parents sometimes and they died almost two centuries ago."

"How am I going to do this?" she moaned into his shirt. "Have to outlive all my human friends? Everyone I know except for you, Elena and Damon?"

Stefan sighed and hugged her tighter. "You just have to get through it. Yes, there will be bad times, but there will be so many more great times to make up for it. Just remember your time with them and feel lucky you got to know them in the first place."

Silence surrounded them as Caroline absorbed his wisdom. Once her tears had dried, she leaned up and gave him a short kiss.

"What was that for?" he asked, smiling.

"For being so wise," she smiled back before turning to continue decorating. "Really though, you're what? 164? Aren't you a little too old to be dating me?" she teased as she started restuffing the stockings again.

"Oh, hardy har har. Why don't you remind me of our age difference in 100 years, huh?"

"You know you'll always be the old man in this relationship while I'll be the beautiful young damsel." She was making him laugh, but he was also really glad she was actually thinking about a future with him. He never wanted to let her go.

Seeing that she was grinning and her cheeks were rosy again, he merely shook his head and went to look in the holiday box. "You forgot to hang this," he smirked as he picked up mistletoe.

"Oh, put that in the front door. Make everyone either horny or uncomfortable when they first come," she said gleefully.

Chuckling, he dutifully hung it outside the door perfectly centered. "Hey, Care, I think someone stole some of the decorations out front." She gasped and began stomping outside before Stefan scooped her up in his arms. "Oh look, mistletoe," he whispered before capturing her lips with his.

She was surprised for a second but gave in quickly, allowing him to slip his tongue into her mouth. They held each other close as they slowly explored each other's mouths under the guise of a holiday tradition.

Way too soon, Caroline pulled back. "Were you serious about those decorations? Do I have to kick someone's ass?"

"No, Care, I just wanted you in my arms," he laughed, pecking her lips again.

"You'll have me all night," she winked before heading back inside. Suddenly, Stefan couldn't wait for this party to be over.

Caroline kept him busy for the rest of the time it took for the others to get there. He was on kitchen duty since his superior cooking skills would result in a delicious meal, at least for the humans. The bloodbags were prepped and set next to the bottles of champagne that she had secured for the night. She turned on some holiday music, letting it softly flow through the house. After burning some pine scented candles, the entire place was set and not a moment too soon. The front door opened; the first guests had arrived.

"Here we are now, entertain us," Damon announced as if he was the Queen of England and expected everyone to bow down. Elena was trailing behind him, smiling faintly at her boyfriend. "Come on, brother. Smells Like Teen Spirit?"

Stefan laughed as he pulled Damon into a bro hug. "Hello to you too, Damon. Elena," he greeted her with a hug as well.

"Wow, you guys really went all out," she commented as she peered into the house.

"It's all Caroline," he replied before nudging her and nodding up. Her eyes landed on the mistletoe that was directly above her and Damon. When she looked down again, Stefan was back in the kitchen getting the food ready to be served.

"Mistletoe," she breathed out, causing Damon to look up as well. With a wicked grin, Damon pulled Elena into his arms and gently dipped her back before leaning into a kiss. They stayed there for a few seconds longer than necessary before Damon pulled her back up and gestured her to walk inside. When they came into the kitchen, both of their cheeks were pink, probably from more than just the cold. "Clever," Elena commented, tipping her head at Stefan.

"Again, all Caroline," he laughed. Damon was stealing some of the fresh Santa cookies, smiling cheekily at Stefan as he glared at him. "Save some for the humans," he tutted at his brother.

"Oh, they'll be fine. I bet Blondie made you cook enough food to last us until Thanksgiving," Damon said as he popped another cookie in his mouth.

Rolling his eyes, Stefan picked up the tray and took it to the dining room. Just as he left the room, a frazzled Caroline walked in.

"Good, you're here," she said as she grabbed Elena. "How is your brother?"

Elena furrowed her eyebrows before looking at Damon for a second. "Good, I guess? I'm not really keeping tabs on him."

"Are he and Bonnie okay?" Caroline demanded from her.

"I think so, why?"

"I don't want this Christmas to be ruined because your stupid brother couldn't keep it in his pants while she was gone."

Damon bursted out laughing but stopped when Caroline fiercely glared at him. "Right, so not funny," he said before walking away to find more food to munch on.

"I'm sure they're fine," Elena assured her. "She hasn't told me anything bad about them."

"Yeah, but he's your brother. She can't badmouth her boyfriend to his sister."

"What about you? Why hasn't she told you anything?"

Caroline blushed. "I may have been a little busy with Stefan lately."

Elena raised her eyebrows and chuckled. "So it's agreed, if tonight goes bad because of them, it's all your and Stefan's fault."

Caroline rolled her eyes and shook her head. "They should be coming soon so we'll see. You just make sure Damon doesn't eat all the food, okay?"

Exactly twenty minutes (and half a tray of cookies) later, Bonnie and Jeremy were walking up to the door. They both paused when they saw the familiar berries hanging above them, but after glancing at each other, they kept walking inside.

"Bonnie!" Caroline squealed as she ran up to one of her best friends. Since coming back from the limbo she was in, Bonnie had decided to move out of Mystic Falls to a nearby town. This allowed her to continue to see everyone, albeit less frequently, and she had mended her relationship with Jeremy for the most part.

Elena quickly appeared to hug Bonnie before giving her brother a hug as well. The girls dragged her off, leaving Jeremy to find one of the Salvatore brothers. He hoped to find Stefan first; Stefan by far threatened to kill him the least. He found both of them setting the table, Damon sneaking pieces of food here and there.

"Aww, did you have to eat half the cookies?" Jeremy complained, noticing his favorite dessert tray was half depleted.

"You don't need the extra calories, Little Gilbert," Damon mentioned as he ate a pretzel. "If you don't have that godly body anymore, what else would Bon Bon stay for?"

Jeremy narrowed his eyes at Damon before nodding a greeting to the younger Salvatore. "You shouldn't talk about things you don't know about."

"What I do know is that you couldn't keep that little dick of yours clean while Bonnie and I were gone for a few months. At least I know Elena was faithful to me."

Jeremy was seeing red. "Shut up," he muttered, trying to calm down before he came out of his vampire hunter retirement.

"I'm just saying. It's not that hard to actually miss someone and not screw others."

"Yeah, well look how well that worked out for Elena. She compelled all her good memories about you away, which shouldn't have been too hard considering you're such a dick all the time."

Damon's eyes darkened and he could feel his fangs behind his lips. He and Elena had to work through months to get back to where they were before. He didn't have to reply to Jeremy though, the murderous look on his face saying it all.

"How about we cool down for a second here," Stefan cut in, eyeing his brother wearily. He really didn't want the night dampened by having blood splattered everywhere.

Damon was about to say something smart when they heard Matt come in. "Hey guys, you won't believe who I brought," he called out from the foyer. All three men went to greet him, surprised to see another blonde and a toddler there as well.

"Well, if it isn't Barbie Klaus," Damon said, eyeing the baby in her arms. "Who is this?"

"This is Hope, my niece," Rebekah smiled. One arm was holding Hope while her other hand was entwined with Matt's.

"Good lord, there's a Baby Klaus now?"

Damon's question was drowned out by Caroline's shrill of excitement. "What an adorable baby!" she cried, taking her from Rebekah's arms without even asking. Bonnie and Elena surrounded her and joined in as they cooed over the child.

"Women," Jeremy shook his head.

He wouldn't admit it, but Stefan actually loved children as well. He stared as Caroline kissed the baby's head, wondering what it would look like if she was holding their child instead. He crushed the dream though; no point in wishing on something that could never happen.

"Wow, now I'm a little scared to bring you in." Most of the people looked up to see Alaric and a heavily pregnant Jo walk up the porch.

"Don't worry, I think the unborn are safe for now," Damon said with a grin as he went to greet his best friend and his best friend's girlfriend. "Mistletoe, by the way," Damon said, pointing up as he moved to get back in the house.

Jo and Alaric both smiled at each other and he leaned down to give her a sweet peck on the lips.

With everyone now arrived, the party was moved into the living room. The girls continued to fawn over the baby while the guys enjoyed glasses of champagne. Well, most of them enjoyed it; Damon complained the whole time that it was a girly drink and longed for his bourbon. Every time he was within a foot of the liquor cabinet, however, Caroline managed to stop what she was doing and send him a death glare from across the room.

"That's not a holiday drink," she complained time and time again, causing Damon to sit down, grumbling about weak alcohol.

When Jo's stomach grumbled, Alaric demanded it was time for dinner, least his unborn child was starved for a few more minutes. They all shuffled into the dining room where all the plates were set and the food was still steaming hot. With Caroline at one end of the table and Stefan at the other (which severely annoyed Damon since it was his house, but Caroline told him it was her party so she was more important), they began digging in. Hope was sitting on Rebekah's lap, trying to pull the entire table cloth down. Being the little hybrid she was, she probably could have if her motor skills were more developed.

When the food was running low and the conversations dying down, Alaric cleared his throat. "I'd just like to say how happy I am that we can all be here to celebrate this holiday together." Cheers went around the table, some even banging their forks on their champagne flutes. "Not to get all mushy on you guys, but I honestly don't think I would've gotten through this past year without this wonderful woman beside me." All the females in the room made an 'aww' sound and the guys silently hated on him for a second for making them look bad. "And with our miracle baby on the way any day now, I just want to be sure that I'll always have everything that I've ever wished for. So, Josette Laughlin," Alaric said as he knelt to the ground on one knee. Everyone held their breath as he fumbled for the box in his jacket, accidentally dropping it on the ground.

"Way to go, Ric," Damon snorted but Elena swatted at his arm, hushing him.

"Jo," Alaric murmured once he picked up the box. "Will you marry me?"

A few tears ran down her face as Jo quickly nodded. Everyone clapped and cheered for them as they both stood up and Alaric shakily put the ring on her finger. They briefly kissed before sitting down, smiles permanently pasted on their faces.

"Well, that one-ups pretty much anything I was going to say to you tonight," Damon mumbled to Elena but loud enough for Stefan to hear. Elena replied, but Stefan was too busy seeking out the attention of his own girlfriend to listen.

He looked down the long table at Caroline, who was just about crying herself. They both smiled, happiness radiating through the room.

After the spectacular dinner, it was time to open presents. Caroline was almost bouncing around from excitement. She had organized a Secret Santa for the group, and while she couldn't wait to see what she got, she also couldn't wait to see the reaction of the person receiving her gift.

It was decided Jo should open her present first since it was obviously her day. The box wasn't too big and was lighter than she expected. As soon as she opened it, she knew who her Secret Santa was. "Damon, really?" she asked dryly, holding up the large pink dildo.

He couldn't hold it in anymore and started laughing. "Ric's getting old, he might not be able to get the job done sometimes."

She hastily put the toy back in the box, a blush covering her otherwise set features.

"Don't let it spoil you, though. Ric can't be packing that much." For the second time that night, Elena hit Damon's arm in disapproval. He smirked as he went to open his present. He frowned as he lifted it up: How To Stay Sober For Dummies. "Alright, who's the wise guy?"

"I just thought if you stopped drinking so much, you might become less of a douche," Bonnie piped up, causing him to raise his eyebrows.

"Au contraire, Judgy, I'm always a douche."

Bonnie shook her head as she stood up to get her gift. It was a small rectangular box and after shaking it for a second to hear something jingling around, she opened it. Inside was a golden bracelet with a few little charms dangling off. Looking around the room, her eyes teared up as they landed on her boyfriend. His cheeks were lightly blushed and he smiled, confirming that it was from him.

"I saw you looking at it a few months ago and thought you should have it."

Bonnie nodded and whispered a thank you while he got his box from under the tree. It was larger than the others and when he opened it, he saw why. There was a large sketch pad inside along with an assortment of colored pencils and charcoal. "Wow," he said, already imagining all the things he could draw. "Who gave me this?"

"Me," Stefan piped up, smiling modestly as he watched the joy on Jeremy's face.

"Thanks, man."

Now it was Stefan's turn. He found two wrapped presents with his name on them so he took them both back to his seat. He decided to open the small one first. Inside the box, he found a keychain snowglobe with a tiny town square replica of Mystic Falls inside. His eyes immediately fell on Caroline, who was beaming at him.

"Now we have matching keychains!" she exclaimed, making everyone laugh. "No, but really, open the other box."

"You know we're only supposed to get one present," Stefan said but was opening the gift anyway. It was a leather bound journal with the name Stefan Antonio Salvatore engraved on the front. Mesmorized, he flipped through the pages to find genuine parchment. He couldn't help himself from leaning over and giving his girlfriend a short but passionate kiss. "Thank you," he whispered when their lips were inches apart before nodding at her to get her present.

Her Secret Santa was Alaric, who got her enough planners and organizers to supply a small store. Alaric's present was a nicely polished flask with his last name on it, given to him by Matt. This caused Damon to complain about inequality since Ric drank just as much as he did. Matt got a pair of tickets to go on a cruise anytime and anywhere he wants, courtesy of Elena. He grinned up at Rebekah, knowing this was fortunate since she was brought as a surprise and therefore wasn't getting any gifts. At last, Jo gave Elena her present, a designer purse that Elena instantly fell in love with.

Almost everyone, excluding Damon and Jo, were happy with their presents, making this year's Christmas party a success.

It wasn't long before everything began winding down. Bonnie and Jeremy were first to leave. They walked out together hand in hand, which was more contact than they had shown all night. Alaric and Jo were next, claiming it was past the baby's bedtime but everyone knew they just wanted to have engagement sex. Rebekah did leave for the Hope's bedtime, though, dragging Matt along with her.

Stefan offered for Elena and Damon to stay the night, to which Damon scoffed off ("You're offering for me to stay the night in my own house?"). He seriously hoped they wouldn't take it though, hoping for some time alone with his girlfriend. Elena graciously declined for both of them, mentioning that they were going to take a quick vacation to Florida before the semester started up again.

Which left just Stefan and Caroline. Stefan closed the front door after Elena stepped through, flicking the lock. He turned around and grinned goofily at the empty house. "Oh, Caroline," he called out.

She walked into the foyer after cleaning up some of the dinner. He vampsped so he was next to her, making her jump. His arms wrapped around her and pulled her close. Giggling, she allowed him to kiss her slowly, as if he had been waiting forever for this moment. His fingers were rubbing circles on the small of her back, pulling her even closer to him.

Caroline sighed as she pulled back, running her fingers through his short hair. "Let's go to bed."

Stefan nodded and he surprised her when he picked her up bridal style to carry her up to his room. It could effectively be considered both of their rooms since she slept over more often than not. The emptiness of her house made her feel lonely and depressed, so she had taken to staying with Stefan.

He set her down on the bed and gave her a lingering kiss before pulling back to get changed into his pajamas. He tossed his shirt to her and she undressed until she was only wearing his shirt and her underwear. The bed shifted as he climbed in and turned off the lights.

"Stefan," she finally said after a second, causing him to turn towards her. "I love you."

He smiled and leaned over for a kiss. "I love you too, Caroline." Once they got settled for sleeping, Stefan spooning behind her, he tucked her hair behind her ear and pecked her cheek. "Merry Christmas."

She giggled and snuggled deeper into his embrace. "Merry Christmas."


End file.
